Playing against your "own openings"

I am a 1.d4 player or eventually 1.Nf3. But I never play (because I,m not prepared of course) 1.e4.

Playing with black I play or Caro-Kann or Sicilian. And in the open-Sicilian. I play Najdorf and Dragon.

Well, the thing is that I'm playing actually two games in "Vote chess" both with white against Sicilian defense (one Najdorf, and the other is a Dragon).

By now, I feel uncomfortable. I feel like I was playing against me, and my ideas!!!.

But,being positive. I think in chess is helpfull to know better the ideas of your opponent. And I hope to learn better the ideas of "1.e4 white players" against Sicilian in this two matches.

Maybe from time to time to play against your own ideas could be a good idea.

I usually find that, when facing them, I don't undertand my own ideas very well.

it pains me to use my own repertoire or defense against me. for example, I used to defend the Petroff defense as Black. but then, as White, I try to avoid the Petroff defense by playing the Bishop's Opening.

at one point, I adopted 1...d6 against all White's first moves, but it bored me out, so now, anything goes! I'm having fun!

Really? That's strange. I play the Pirc, the Scheveningen and the King's Indian, and I find them very exciting.

that's right. I preferred the Lion Variation of the Philidor against white's e4. Old Indian on white's d4. I find my system to be boring, so I shifted to Sicilian Dragon and Modern Benoni

You cannot avoid playing against at least one of your own systems. Even if you play a very concise repertoire, with only one reply to each of your opponents openings, there will be a point somewhere where your black and white repertoire's cross.

I personally enjoy playing against my own stuff as I actually remember it better and am more familiar with the ideas. I think it helps me too, as I tend to do better against 1...e5 and 1...c5 with white (both openings I play with black too) then I do against black's other first moves. It could also just be because I see them more and have put in more study time, but then again I see the french at least as often as 1...e5 and I still do bad against it most of the time. Maybe one day I will have to play it myself.

I think the one I enjoy equally well from both sides is the Sicilian Dragon. Never boring.

Yes, it's difficult to play against your own opening. At some point we pick lines with black and white which we think are the best. I read somewhere that Botvinnik said you shouldn't play against your own opening - but I think this is a logical impossibility isn't it ? For me "best" play by both sides crosses over in the NimzoIndian and I do prefer White. With Black I would "hope" for a mistake by White.

I play the English as white, and hate to face it as black. I play the Symmetrical against it, figuring to "out english" my opponent, but it is always tough.

I no longer think of it as "my" system - I think of myself as an expert in those positions. And at that point I am very happy to play either side.

I much prefer to play against my own opening choices, at least I know which lines are difficult to deal with.

That seems a good idea in terms of being in a position that you have a good chance of understanding better than your opponent but what about a Black player responding 1...e5 and trying to out-open-sicilian you ? :-)  Silman makes a very interesting point:

"Consider 1.e4 c5 2.Nc3 Nc6 3.f4 g6 4.Nf3 Bg7 where Black is not afraid of 5.Bc4 e6, 5.Bb5 Nd4 or 5.g3. Turn the board around and surprisingly White has no advantage after 1.c4 e5 2.g3 Nc6 3.Bg2 f5 4.Nc3 Nf6 as 5.e3 d5!, 5.d3 Bb4 and 5.a3 g6 all yield Black good play – a good example of Black’s information advantage compensating for the lost tempo."

http://www.jeremysilman.com/book_reviews_jd/English_Opening_Vol_1.html

Yes, 1. c4 e5 is probably the most common response to the English. And while it is merely a reversed Sicillian with an extra tempo, it is actually quite different. That is the variation I prefer to play, over 1. c4 c5 actually.

I play Nf6 after c4, usually getting to somewhat of a KID

I would imagine you get a reversed closed Sicillian if White plays d3 more often than a KID perhaps ?

I play 1.d4 as white, and the caro-kann and slav as black (in most games of course, depending on white's moves). So my only "pet" opening that I can run into is the Slav, and my book on the slav and semi slav is from the perspective of both black and white, so I have no preference to which colour I play in the slav. :)

I also play 1.d4 and the Caro, and I really should play the Slav more. I play the Nimzo-Indian.

Is this based on the necessity of drawing against master strength players (with Black) rather than "risking" it with the Nimzo ?